National Cycling Team returns home

Asmara, 14 November 2012 – The National Cycling Team returned home today after proving to be the “Gold Team” at the African Cycling Championship which took place in the capital of Burkina Faso, Ouagadougou, despite the severe hot weather.

In an interview he conducted at Asmara International Airport, Mr. Musie Asehel, the team’s coach, told Eri-Tv that the competition was one in which the Eritrean team did its level best and demonstrated harmony to uphold its previous status of African Champion. The team’s triumph also elicited ablaze African pride in the conclusion of the tournament, he said.

The National team was accorded official reception ceremony from Asmara International Airport through Bahti Meskerem Square, in which a large number of fans appeared. During the ceremony, Maj. General Ramadan Osman Aweliyai, Sports Commissioner, announced that President Isaias Afwerki has `awarded each cyclist 100,000 Nakfa, while the coach and the technician have been awarded 70,000 Nakfa and 30,000 Nakfa respectively.

Natnael Birhane, the second time African champion, expressed appreciation for the warm public reception, and expressed the team’s readiness to live up to expectations of the nation.

The National Cycling Team has won a total of 21 medals over the past 3 years, and that has been registered as a new continental record.